ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast – A government spokesman in Ivory Coast says judges have approved the provisional release of 14 loyalists of former President Laurent Gbagbo who were arrested following the country's 2010-11 postelection violence.

Bruno Kone said the suspects included the former president of Gbagbo's political party and Gbagbo's son Michel. He noted that legal proceedings against them would continue.

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More than 3,000 people died after Gbagbo refused to cede office despite losing the November 2010 election to current President Alassane Ouattara, according to United Nations estimates.

Ouattara's government has been accused of only pursuing cases against Gbagbo loyalists despite widespread evidence that grave crimes were committed by both sides. More than 100 Gbagbo loyalists were detained in connection with the violence, and many have been held for more than two years without trial.